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Ghajini

That I didn't realize how my 3+ hours passed by is testimony to the fact that you can't take the love for masala out of this Indian. Even though I usually don't like this combination of spices I found myself enjoying most of Ghajini. The thriller succeeded in getting me anxious but the seasoning left a bad after-taste.

Ghajini - Preview

NOT A REVIEW - Just wondering if I can delete Memento from my memory, so I can give Ghajini a fair chance...

Do your ears prick up when you hear the name of one of your all-time favorites? If yes, then you'll know exactly what I mean, when I say, "I felt like a newly married Indian bride - full of mixed feelings, sorrow and excitement all at once - when I heard Aamir Khan is going to star in the Hindi version of Memento. It's one of my all-time favorites, across genres, across boundaries, across years, etc."

Mixed because it's exciting that someone's trying something as mind-boggling as Memento in Hindi movies. The concept will be exposed to so many more people. BUT, one look at the promos, and my apprehensions began germinating.

Songs! With dance!! Bare-chested hero dancing!!! Noooooo, they can't do this to me!!!!

What's wrong with that? For one - its going to make the movie longer. See what I mean here. And when you are used to eating a particular dish with a certain amount of salt-and-pepper, there is bound to be anxiety if other masala is added to suit other people's palate, right? Anyways, that's the flipside of wanting more people to watch it, I guess. Let's just hope the publicity department got over-enthusiastic and the movie will be in stark contrast to the on-the-face promos. Other bloggers share my uneasiness too, albeit for different reasons.

There are other Hollywood films on same theme of short term memory loss like Finding Nemo and 50 First Dates. So why single out Memento?

LOL Finding Nemo? Ha! Finding Nemo?? Ha! Ha!!

If Ghajini is like Memento as Finding Nemo is about short-term memory loss, then it can have all the songs and drama as it likes. To me we are not even talking about Memento, then. Besides, there's more to Memento than just the background of short-term memory loss. It's the whole construct. The non-linear narrative technique used is completely justified and in sync with the background. And the lingering effect that the climax has on your psyche - the kind which wants you to watch the movie again...right away!

For now, let's hope the makers have done a little more research on short-termmemoryloss than they have on movies that have it as a backdrop.
Anyway, in the same interview, Madhu says -

It's not a tale of violence. It's a tale of retribution. And at the moment after 26/11 everyone wants answers. Films about retribution are always liked.

Now, that may be the need of the hour, when cinema halls in cities are being avoided in the last few weeks.
And the theaters seem all set to welcome Ghajini too. Read this fun bit about how the theaters are gearing up in response to the promotional efforts -

Mumbai actor Aamir Khan, whose hairstyle in the film "Ghajini" has been imitated by the ushers and employees of various multiplexes as part of a special promotional activity.

I'm assuming no-one was coerced into it.

The actor's physique, is the other marketing tool. 6-8-10-12-infinity pack abs. Who am I to complain about a good-looking male body on screen every 10th minute? Hey, 5th will do too. But, if I'm too distracted to notice/follow the story, only the makers are to blame. And I certainly hope that the distraction from story is not intentional, just so we don't notice the gaps. However, it has already earned some good karma by inspiring some of us to hit the gym and stay healthy!

Hey, is there some hope of dark humor considering the URL chosen for the official site is 'remember ghajini'. Let's just cross our fingers and hope Ghajini will stay in our memory for longer than short-term...

- meeta, a part of the audience

A few frames into the movie and I knew I'd be wasting the 3 hours to come if I chose to connect the proceedings on the screen with Memento. So, I sent Memento out of the dark hall. I began adjusting myself to the loud chant-like background music which over-compensated for the sparse dialogue. And my eyes refocused as per the over-zealous camera-person/editor's demands. Once I gave in, I saw myself getting involved with the characters, getting curious, heart-beating in the throat and all.

Ghajini is one of those movies which I liked despite sensing the flavor of 'over-the-top' cinema in each of the 185 minutes. It absorbed me in its present scene and yet left a garish after-taste. It's all packed in there - drama, emotion, romance, action, song, dance, and a social message thrown in for no charge. Mixing of more than 2 genres annoyed me here, as always, e.g. I felt completely lost when the romance cropped up.

And just imagine the state of my mind when songs were thrown in like rabbits jump out of magic hats - from nowhere. While on that note, my heart bled when I heard Prasoon Joshi pull a Sameer, save a few verses. Since the songs were picturised and choreographed well, I vote for a separate music video album for those who are interested. Do you?

Anyway, scene-by-scene Ghajini grew on me. While I wouldn't have enjoyed any one thread of the plot by itself, the total added up to a little more than the sum of the parts. The sequences that worked without any caveat were the two junctions where the thriller was poised such that anxiety of the protagonist's next step raised my pulse-rate.

Not as badly as Aamir Khan's pulsating nerves at his temples though. Wide eyes wanting to scream louder than what his voice box can create. It's inexplicable why his character transformed into this unwieldy monster when angry. Almost as if to show this is what this Khan is capable of -physical shape included. And note that I haven't yet spoken against how his short-term memory turns him into a superhero with super-duper action-powers. Now that I've done it, I had a huge problem with all the so-called 'crowd pleasing', 'mass appeal' items added. Once again, I'm a part of the masses and one in the crowd and I don't want it! Oh well...

However, Aamir mesmerized me with his subtle reflexes in the emotional and romantic sequences. And Asin very charmingly supported him and entertained the audience. Her occasionally-irritating saccharine character was endearing enough for me to wish for her happiness. Though all very white, it was a part written with a little more meat than usually accorded to women in Hindi cinema. On the other hand, Jiah Khan had a sketch of a role which she fumbled through as ungraciously as she could. Why were her urdu lessons being publicized? She could barely hide the accent while speaking English!

Ghajini's nowhere as smart or nearly as subtle as Memento but it's not completely stupid either. It's not even a fraction as mind-boggling as Memento either, but it does keep your brain ticking fast enough to ignore the huge leaps of faith every 10th minute. Ghajini is certainly one of those that people who love the melodramatic elements of Hindi cinema will enjoy but those who hate masala will hate. And either you have to be one of those who hasn't watched Memento or can block memories of Memento to make the most out of this one. I combined my tolerance of all things Bolly and ignored the original to like it as much as I did.

Plot Summary

What Worked

Aamir Khan looks so young in the 2005-6 bits. His photograph in the diary actually looks like he's all set to break into 'papa kehte hai'

Parts of the choreography in 'bachoo'

The picturization of multiple Aamir Khans in the 'behka' song.

What did not

Note: This section simply lists the things that I did not like in this movie. This is not the overall impression about this movie. Please read the full review here

Is there only one Ghajini in this whole wide world!?

The medical lesson spoon-fed by an actual lecture!

The cut from "Wonder what he might be doing?" to showing what "he" was doing. Too sharp.

How come he remembers how to use his mobile but has to be reminded to take his shirt off? Does memory through repetition set in selectively?

The fast-forward style editing made the most serious scenes look comical.

The note on short-term memory loss, went by too fast for a slow-reader like me. Were they not sensitized with Taare Zameen Par? Or did the sensitivity slip out of there short-term memories?...Never mind!

Bad lip-synch in the 'bachoo' song.

The entire cliché of how a business tycoon is unaware of kindness in the 'real' world.

How does Ghajini know to come to the basement to look for his gang member?

No one cares about a missing police officer?

How does Jiah Khan get hold of those diaries, weren't they thrown around in the apartment?

Just can't remember where that 'blind man' scene is copied from. I know I saw it in I see you, but there's another original. Besides the plagiarizing, it wasn't done well, was too in the face!

How come a Mumbai-Goa train look like a Mumbai local train?

Nitty-Gritty

This section lists things that I think are not important to the overall impact of the movie. In most cases, it could be explained away by something like, "we noticed the glitch after the scene was shot and there were schedule/budget issues and thus we could not re-shoot it". I like giving the makers the benefit of doubt, but I am amused nevertheless. Hopefully, they will tickle you too.

Nittigritties

Parental Guidance:

Violence: Loads and pretty brutal at that!

Nudity & Sexual content: Not much except for a few songs with skimpily dressed women.

Concept: That of revenge and use of violence to achieve goals.

General Look and Feel: Very rugged and raw feel in about half the movie. And the rest is bright and peppy with songs at regular intervals.

Please do not expect Memento! The only things copied are the plot and the short term memory loss concept. There isn't even a non linear narrative. Lots of masala, flashbacks etc. This is what the Tamil version had and I believe they've only changed the climax, which is a good thing considering how bad the second half of tamil version was.

Adithya has posted 3 comments and has rated 0 movies. See Adithya's page for more details.

Adithya, that's actually very heartening. That its not like Memento and that the bad parts from the Tamil movie have been changed. So, these things in combination with Aamir Khan being a part of the movie means it can't be bad. Anyway, we'll know soon enough.

@whiner: That's the difference between a copy and an inspiration. Many Hollywood directors do it too. They are just more justified than what Bollywood directors are. Even Quentin Tarantino's Kill Bill was an inspired version of a million Asian flicks that impressed him. So if someone is trying to build on an existing concept, add the Indian film sensibilities and masala to it, it is probably going to turn out to be a good effort.

Definitely, Memento, a scene by scene copy, is going to be a huge failure with our audience. Even if it were to be original.

Adithya has posted 3 comments and has rated 0 movies. See Adithya's page for more details.

Ranajay :DSajitha thanks!Pankaj thanks! you should consider writing an analytical essay when you are done!Sumeet fixed! thanks for taking the effort to point out the errors. Much appreciated!!nightcrawler oh no! that never feels good...

well "written" review but wrong on almost every count IMHO.If you sat through the entire movie without feeling it was way too long you really have a masochistic streak.Secondly, I feel that while Aamir gave a very creditable performance in this semi-plagiarized film, this performance will not transfer well to the dvd/vcd.See it on the small screen and you will know exactly what I am talking abt. See this movie in the theater but only for the Aamir's effort, perhaps his best to date.The songs were always a welcome interruption, especially Gujarish and Behka, the latter where the Milo camera is used to some good effect.Movie could have been made much better by developing the pre-trauma story more and making the revenge & memory loss part much shorter.

I cannot simply erase Memento and I would have to say that this movie sucked for two primary reasons.0. Memento is way better.1. The "short term memory loss" angle was underplayed which was the thing that separates this from a run-of-the mill revenge drama.2. The screenplay is patchy. It peaks and then gets drowned in Aamir's seething anger and guttral sounds, song/dance and flashbacks. It is a 3 and a half hours of torture.

Audience may lap it up because of the masala quotient but that does not make it a good movie. Heck, it does not even have a decent villain and the action sequences suck.

Himanshu has posted 3 comments and has rated 0 movies. See Himanshu's page for more details.

your User rating algorithm certainly needs a major improvement.for only one user who sees it to be too good rates 5.and overall user rating remains 5.cmmon 5 for this unoriginal, south indian style movie...certainly not

reshma has given this movie a Nay! Thumbs Down(unoriginal, south indian fight scenes with bollywood masala,).
reshma has posted 1 comments and has rated 1 movies. See reshma's page for more details.